Technical Field
The present disclosure provides filaments and particularly barbed filaments which can adhere directly to tissue following implantation.
Background of Related Art
Filaments may be used to form sutures which are frequently used to close or bind wounds in human or animal tissue. Conventional sutures can be a smooth monofilament or can be a multi-filament, and can be formed from non-absorbable material such as silk, nylon, polyester, polypropylene, or cotton, or can be formed from bio-absorbable material such as glycolic and polymers and copolymers or lactic acid polymers and copolymers.
Barbed sutures are generally formed from the same materials as conventional sutures, and offer several advantages for closing wounds compared with conventional sutures. Barbed sutures include barbs that project from the surface of the filament body along the body length. The barbs are arranged to allow passage of the barbed suture in one direction through tissue but resist movement in the opposite direction.
Various methods of forming barbs on filaments or sutures are known in the art. For example, barbs may be produced by cutting into the filament or suture material. By cutting into the body of the filament, the diameter of the filament may be significantly narrowed near the area of the barb, which can weaken the mechanical strength of the filament. Any stress applied by the tissue to the barbed filament following implantation can potentially lead to either: breaking of the body of the filament along the narrowed diameter portion of the filament, and/or, failing of the barb which extends away from the body of the filament because the narrowed body of the filament near the barb can not properly support the barb under a certain level of stress. For example, following implantation the tissue, due to body movement, can apply stress to the filament body and the barbs which can lead to tearing and/or destabilization of the filament and/or the wound. Breakages in the filament can occur in extreme cases.
It could therefore be helpful to provide a barbed filament which not only resists movement in a direction opposite the barbs, but also enhances the mechanical strength of the suture by adhering directly to the surrounding tissue following implantation, and specifically near the location of the barb and/or the narrowed diameter of the filament to provide additional support and prevent premature tearing, destabilization and/or breakage of the filament.